Akademik

plead·ing n

1 a: one of the formal declarations (as a complaint or answer) exchanged by the parties in a legal proceeding (as a suit) setting forth claims, averments, allegations, denials, or defenses; also: a written document embodying such a declaration see also relation back

b: any of the allegations, averments, claims, denials, or defenses set forth in a pleading

alternative pleading: a pleading that sets out an alternative theory in support of a plaintiff's claim for relief or a defendant's defense

amended pleading: a pleading that is filed to replace an original pleading and that contains matters omitted from or not known at the time of the original pleading

re·spon·sive pleading /ri-'spän-siv-/: a pleading that directly responds to another pleading (as by denying in an answer allegations in a complaint)

sham pleading: a pleading that is factually false, is not made in good faith, and that may be struck

supplemental pleading: a pleading that supplements an earlier pleading with matters that have occurred or come into existence since the date of the original pleading

2: a process or system through which the parties in a legal proceeding present their allegations

code pleading: pleading (as fact pleading) done in accordance with the rules set down in a code

◇ Code pleading began in 1848 in New York State and was a departure from the complex system of common-law pleading, which included a lengthy set of stages by which a single issue was produced, and which was determined by the type of writ under which the plaintiff proceeded.

fact pleading: pleading that requires a plaintiff to set out in the complaint facts sufficient to establish a cause of action compare notice pleading in this entry

notice pleading: pleading that is characterized esp. by a simplified description sufficient to give notice of a claim or defense rather than by a technical account of any facts pertinent to the claim or defense compare fact pleading in this entry

◇ Notice pleading is allowed under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and in a majority of states, although complex cases often require substantial detail in the pleading.